


I Got the Magic in Me

by FlyingFleshEater



Category: Glee, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/F, Post - Deathly Hallows
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-07
Updated: 2013-10-07
Packaged: 2017-12-28 16:30:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/994094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlyingFleshEater/pseuds/FlyingFleshEater
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rachel Berry is rubbish at wandless magic. Quinn Fabray is rubbish at saying no to anything Rachel asks of her, but she hadn't realized just how obvious she was. Quidditch, Slytherin plots, and clueless Ravenclaw Keepers abound. HP!Glee</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I Got the Magic in Me

**Author's Note:**

> There seemed to be some confusion when I initially posted this. This is set in 2012, all of Harry Potter can be considered cannon, and most of the next generation are not in school yet.

"It's no use!" Rachel Berry, sixth year Slytherin, exclaimed in frustration, slamming herself down into a desk in the empty classroom she was using to practice. She grabbed her wand (Aspen,dragon heartstring, 9 inches)from the top of the desk and threw it across the room in anger. It bounced and sparks shot out of the end. Her anger dissipated quickly, just like the sparks in the air, and she slumped down in her seat, laying her head on her crossed arms on the desk top. "I don't know why you're wasting your time helping with this," she told her companion. "I'm just no good at wandless magic. I can't do it."

Her companion, the tall, beautiful, talented, and intelligent Quinn Fabray, sixth year Ravenclaw, frowned in the direction of the thrown wand and summoned it back. "Well with that defeatist attitude you'll never get it. You have to stay positive." She put the wand in front of Rachel's crossed arms and then stepped back again quickly. Her finger had brushed the other girl's grey and green sweater and she had immediately thought about the arm under the wool and the skin that covered that arm and how soft it would be and-

She took a deep breath and focused on what Rachel was saying.

"The irony in this conversation just became apparent."

Quinn scowled. "Just because I'm not high on life like you usually are doesn't mean I don't have confidence in my magic. I know I can do it, so I can. If you keep saying you can't then you'll never be able to."

Rachel conceded her point with a nod. "Fine, carry on."

Quinn sighed and cocked her left hip, to which her hand attached immediately. It was a classic Ravenclaw 'I'm better than you' pose, and Rachel was sick of seeing it. "You're going about it all wrong."

"I've changed my mind," the brunette announced, sitting up straight. "I don't want to do this if you're just going to talk down to me the whole time. I had enough of that when we were young thanks."

"Look," Quinn cut in before Rachel could storm out, "I'm just saying that you don't understand the concept properly."

"Wandless magic!" Rachel spat, slamming her hands on the desk. He wand bounced again and the rolled toward her. "Magic without a wand!" She grabbed her wand and shook it in front of the blonde's face. Quinn leapt away when sparks shot toward her. "I know the concept," she slammed the wand back on the table. "The execution is my problem."

"I'm trying to explain it to you!" Quinn shouted right back in her face. "If you would just sit down for a minute and stop being so dramatic, maybe we could get somewhere."

Rachel huffed and puffed and stamped one of her little feet, which did nothing but make the blonde smile a little. She sat down with a few more huffs and a pout. "Ravenclaws," she scoffed. "Think they know so much."

"Because we do," Quinn replied with a gloating smile. "Now, your problem is that you aren't focusing your magic the right way."

"I don't know how to, I need my wand to do magic."

"No you don't. Don't you remember being a little kid and doing magic by accident?" The brunette nodded. "You're thinking about your magic the wrong way. Your wand is just a tool though which you focus your power. It shapes the magic with very little effort on your part. Wandless magic means that you have to shape the magic yourself." She took both of the Slytherin's hands in her own and pulled her to her feet. "The magic doesn't come from your wand, Rachel, the magic is inside you."

"That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

"I was being literal, not metaphorical."

"It was still the nicest thing."

"Well, we're in the DA together. I don't really have a reason to be mean to you anymore."

Rachel rolled her eyes good naturedly. "Just show me what I'm supposed to do."

Quinn helped her get into the proper stance, even going so far as to kick her feet apart. "Ok," she grabbed the girl's wand off the desk and handed it to her, "summon one of those books over there." Rachel raised her wand arm to do so but Quinn caught her wrist. "But while you do it, focus on the way the magic feels inside you. Pay attention to the way it swirls up; try to feel where it originates. Listen to what your body is telling you and just feel the warmth as it moves toward your wand."

Rachel tried to do as bid. It would have been easy, she told herself, if Quinn hadn't stood so close to her back, so close that she could feel the body heat in the space between them. She did focus though, eventually, and Quinn probably hadn't noticed her hesitation, or had chalked it up to mental preparation.

The familiar warmth of magic buzzed through her, filling her chest to capacity and then shooting along her arm to her wand. This time, she really paid attention to how it felt, and to her astonishment she felt like it was creating a pattern on its way to the exit at the end of her wand.

The spell flew free and the book she had chosen to summon flew at her. Quinn caught it out of the air and put it down on the desk.

"Do it again, and keep the same focus."

So she did, until the pile of books on the desk held more than the shelf across the room. When Quinn banished all the books back to their shelves in a perfect arch with just a single flick of her wand (Apple, unicorn tail hair, 10.2 inches) Rachel had to reign in her jealousy. The blonde was just so effortlessly good at everything she did.

"Now," she carefully plucked Rachel's wand from her hand and set in on the desk they had used earlier, "do the exact same thing, but summon your wand into your hand. You can get closer, if you want."

Rachel did want, but she didn't want to look weak so she stayed where she was.

"Stay in the same stance and extend your arm as if you're still holding your wand. In fact, envision that you are holding it."

She tried the spell, tried to pull the magic up from her belly in the same pattern as before, but nothing happened. The wand stayed where it was.

"Don't give up."

She took a few deep breaths and tried again. Again there was nothing. This time she didn't let Quinn say anything before trying again. Still nothing. Behind her, Rachel heard Quinn moving.

"Just give me a minute."

"Ok."

Rachel closed her eyes and focused her thoughts on what she wanted. She wanted to impress Quinn Fabray, captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team and smartest girl in school, next to herself of course. She wanted to prove that she could do wandless magic. It was just one measly spell and she  _could_  do it. She wanted that damn wand in her hand and she wanted it  _now_!

Her eyes flew open, glinting with determination. "ACCIO WAND!" The magic flew out from her hand, invisible and intangible, and without the funnel formed by a wand it spread out over the desk like a wave, most of it converted to thermal energy in the air before it even reached the wand, but some of it did connect.

The wand didn't shoot into her hand like she had hoped, but it did scoot across the desk a whole two inches before it wiggled to a stop.

"It moved!" Rachel crowed, rounding on the blonde, an excited spark in her eyes.

"It did," Quinn agreed. She smiled gently at Rachel's enthusiasm. The smile departed quickly and turned into a look of sheer panic when Rachel flew at her and wrapped strong arms around her neck.

"Praise Merlin! I made it move. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

The blonde couldn't form words in English, her brain, usually very well ordered, was a jumbled mess of sounds and thoughts. All she could think about was that Rachel Berry was pressed fully against her from shoulders to knees, a warm cheek against hers.

"I think that's enough for today," Quinn replied finally, her voice a little high pitched and frantic as she pulled away from the smaller girl's embrace and tried to gain back some control. "Keep practicing this week and you should be fine for the practical. As long as you show improvement you'll get good marks. Uh…I have to go to do a thing."

"A thing?" Rachel asked in amusement, high off of her small success and not even letting the disappointment of Quinn's eminent departure sully her good mood.

She answered as she backed towards the door, nervous of the predatory look in the Slytherin's eyes. "Yeah, a Quidditch thing. Very boring, I'm sure you aren't interested. See you in class."

Quinn bolted from the room before she realized she had left her bag and had to double back to get it, smacking her forehead a few times. When she ran back in it was to find a smirking Rachel Berry holding her bag out to her by the strap.

"Shut up," the blonde snapped, snatching the bag away from the brunette, her ears and cheeks a light pink.

"Didn't say a word."


	2. Cross Road Blues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Puck and Santana make a deal.

Noah Puckerman, sixth year Gryffindor, ambled up to the Slytherin house table near the end of lunch, casting glances around to make sure the subjects of his business there weren't near by. He had spotted his target early on but had waited for the table to clear out a little so no one would overhear what he had to discuss. It was a delicate matter, and something that actually set heavy in his stomach. Sometimes you had to do bad things in order to get results though.

He slipped onto the bench beside the girl he needed and immediately started in on his proposition before she could bite his head off. "Alright Lopez, here's the deal. You help me get into the Slytherin common room and I'll knock Abrams off his broom in the next game and make it look like an accident."

Artie Abrams wasn't exactly Puck's friend. He acted friendly with the boy and he didn't have a problem with him, but Santana hated his guts, and promising a little violence on the boy was just the ticket to get on her good side.

It took the startled Santana Lopez, sixth year Slytherin, a moment to both process Puck's sudden appearance and try to figure out what he was talking about."Ok, in the first place, you do not get to just come up to me and ask for favors after the way you treated me last time we talked."

Puck winced. He didn't like to think of that, it was during the whole BabyGate debacle the year before and Santana had been going through her own issues, but that hadn't stopped him from acting like an asshole. "Sorry, I was an asshole."

"You asked for a blow job."

"You were all pressed up against me, and you're hot. Puck junior was feeling the heat." The compliment was unapologetic even with its lewd undertone, and Santana kind of appreciated the sentiment. It still made her want to barf though.

"I was crying."

"I said sorry."

Santana sighed. Puck wasn't the type to grovel which was irritating to her, but was also part of the reason they were friends despite the red and gold in his uniform. "Why should I help you? I don't want any Gryffindors in my common room. What do you want in for anyway? You better not be trying to sneak in for a hookup with Zizes cause not only would I hurl on you, but I share a dorm with her, and there's no way I'm going to let the two of you get it on when I'm in the same room."

Puck rolled his eyes at the girl's ignorance. Didn't she know boys couldn't get in any of the girls' dorms? He just took Lauren to his room when she was feeling charitable. "I need to get even with Kurofsky and Adams, they've been messing with my boy Kurt a lot lately and it's time they learned a lesson."

"Isn't that sweet," Santana cooed with a sneer.

Puck's cheeks colored a little. "Shut up Lopez, not all of us are raging homos. Kurt is my man because we're in the same house. We all have to work and live together. He's getting shit from them, I'm gonna get back at 'em."

"I don't really care about you Gryffindors and your little pride. And I can knock Abrams off his broom far more convincingly than you can, Chaser." Being a beater definitely had its advantages. Allowing a violent individual like Santana access to a club and a flying ball of death probably wasn't the smartest idea that Coach Sylvester had ever had (but as the Head of Slytherin she did have a tendency to pad her home team with the most aggressive players). The development of her amazing upper-body strength was also definitely helpful for…well it was helpful.

"Shut up, you won't because Brittany would be mad at you." He smirked when that got her scowl to deepen. He dropped his voice and leaned closer to her. "You know you hate those assholes just as much as I do."

"So what? They're Slytherins, we stick together. They're my people. Just like you little kitties are with each other."

"Yeah well Kurt and Brittany and Blaine are your people too."

"Two Hufflepuffs and a Gryffindor are my people?" Santana actually scoffed. Sure, she would claim Brittany, or she would have before that douche Abrams had moved in on her territory. But Kurt and Blaine? She didn't have problems with them, but they weren't her friends.

"Yeah, you know… _your people."_  Puck's tone gave away exactly what he was trying to say. Trust a Gryffindor to have no subtlety.

"Fuck you, you don't know my life."

Puck could tell he was losing ground, and fast, he switched tactics quickly. "What if it was Brittany they were messing with, huh?"

She stiffened, her whole face hard as stone, and he could hardly contain his pleased grin. He had her now. "That's different."

"Not by much."

They sat together silently while Santana mulled over what he had proposed. It was taking so long that Puck was about to build himself a plate of leftovers to chew on when she finally spoke.

"Maybe you should have been in Slytherin, Puck." I was said in defeat, and that wasn't a good look for her.

"Fuck you."

"Been there, done that." Arrogance and a demeaning sneer, much better.

"Come on, are you gonna help me or do I have to go behind your back? If you don't, I'll do something to you while I'm in there. 'Cause you know I'll find a way in."

"Fine, but Abrams better be splattered."

"Deal."


	3. Come Fly With Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ravenclaw vs. Gryffindor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentions of Quick

"No one can score on Quinn Fabray."

"Except Puckerman."

It had been a long running statement of fact years before it became a punch line. Now it was almost a slogan for Ravenclaw/Gryffindor games.

Quinn pretended not to care.

Puck didn't really think it was funny, but he had a reputation to uphold, so he laughed and agreed anytime he heard it said. Unless Santana or Berry were around, then he would just shrug and put some sort of heavy book in front of his crotch so they wouldn't attack him.

He didn't have to worry at his own breakfast table though, and both Santana and Berry were at Slytherin's table making moon eyes at different people. He knew Santana was looking forlornly at the Hufflepuff table where Artie Abrams, Ravenclaw sixth year, was getting a little pre-game "good luck" from Brittany Pierce, Hufflepuff sixth year.

Berry though; he couldn't get a good bead on who she was mooning over. It could have been that dopey Finn Hudson guy in Hufflepuff. He was supposed to be a sixth year but got held back because he O.W.L.s were so terrible. Quidditch and eating were pretty much the only things he was good at, and Puck had heard from Mike Chang, sixth year Hufflepuff, that he had thrown a huge fit over Sam Evens, sixth year Hufflepuff, being mad Captain. The guy was nearly a squib and absolute proof that Hufflepuff had to take anyone that didn't fit in the other houses, he was the biggest asshole that Puck had ever met, and that was saying something, because not only did Puck pride himself on being a dick, but he had met Draco Malfoy once, and that guy was an asshole.

He was pretty sure Berry was way too smart and ambitious to go after a loser like Hudson. She could easily be staring at someone at the Ravenclaw table, but he had his back to them for the purpose of avoiding looking at Quinn.

Puck shrugged to himself and put more eggs in his mouth. He had a hard game ahead of him. Just because he was only one that score on Quinn Fabray didn't mean it was easy to do so. He would have to come up with a new shot pattern.

He looked down at his plate and completely missed Rachel Berry getting up from the Slytherin table and making her move.

**HP!GLEE**

"Good luck in the game today, Quinn." The blonde that had been addressed stiffened reflexively. She would recognize that voice anywhere, and it was exactly the one she hadn't wanted to hear that morning.

"Oh, thank-" Quinn looked up to thank the girl, who she had not been avoiding at all since their last encounter, hoping that she would just accept the thanks and then keep walking, but was stopped mid-plan by what the other girl was wearing. "What are you wearing?" Usually on casual days such as weekends and game days, Rachel would sport some sort of terrible sweater and skirt combo in horrid prints and patterns. It almost made it easier for Quinn to look at her when she was in her hideous casual fashion because it made her slightly less attractive. Now though, she was wearing tight, tight, denim trousers that Quinn knew were called jeans by the muggleborn kids, along with the Ravenclaw house Quidditch shirt from two years ago. It had a buff eagle caricature on it and the words Shake Your Tail Feathers in bronze ink. The back listed the names of the students on the Quidditch team and in the reserves. It had been Quinn's first year on the team as first string Keeper and it was therefore her favorite shirt.

"Do you like it? Tina lent it to me. I' m supporting Ravenclaw in the match today, but I found that I had nothing suitable to wear."

The blonde's brows drew together. "Yeah, it's great."

"She also taught me the Ravenclaw house song. I've always thought it sounded so elegant and haunting. It's certainly nothing like the Slytherin song. I confess that I prefer it actually."

"That's…nice." Quinn shifted uncomfortably in her seat, eyes darting around to avoid looking at Rachel's long legs and firm ass encased in those tight, tight jeans. She hated casual days for several reasons, not the least of which was Rachel's tendency to wear revealing clothing. She didn't want to think about Rachel singing either. Her voice was just one more of Quinn's many weaknesses when it came to the pint sized diva.

One would think that there wouldn't be much opportunity for singing at a school for magic, but Rachel somehow managed to bring up her talent and her future plans at least twice an hour, no matter the situation. A few weeks ago the girl had gone on a long rant about how the fumes from the potions in Potions Lab were likely highly detrimental to her future career as a Broadway star. Quinn had rolled her eyes with the rest of the class, but she hadn't jeered the girl like some of the Gryffindors had.

"I was wondering if we could talk about what happened the other night."

Quinn stiffened. That was the last thing she wanted to do. She and Rachel had been tiptoeing around each other for years. At first it was easy to treat her poorly. It was almost excusable to be mean and borderline violent to Slytherins that refused to join the DA. Then her excuse had been snatched away and a forced politeness took its place. That had evolved easily into a flirtatious relationship. Rachel was an observant girl. She had noticed the looks and the blushes and the subtle flirting, but every time she attempted to act on it the blonde would backtrack. It was like trying to get past a sphinx. "Actually, can we not?"

"Quinn, I don't mean to push you, but-"

"Look, Rachel, we can talk about it later if you want, but I need to focus on the game. I don't have time for any drama right now."

"I was just going to inquire about your-"

"Rachel, I'm serious. Not now." She tried to ignore the way that Rachel taking a step back and looking down like a scolded puppy made her feel like a complete ass. "Later, I promise."

"After the game?"

"Yes."

Rachel nodded meekly and stepped away. "Good luck again Quinn."

"Thanks again."

_Why in Merlin's name did I promise her?_

Quinn shook her head and turned back to her breakfast and the parchment beside her plate. She had been in the process of formulating their game strategy when Rachel interrupted her. Not that it would do much good really, everyone with half a brain could figure out the Gryffindor game plan. Get the Quaffle to Puck and he would do the rest. Also catch the Snitch. The plan hadn't changed since Quinn had made Keeper and it wasn't likely to until she graduated.

**HP!GLEE**

Quinn wasn't one for long motivational speeches. She also wasn't the type to yell "LET'S KICK SOME ASS!" like Puck was doing in the locker room next door. The Gryffindors were cheering loudly, chanting their weird "DONUT" pep-chant, something the pureblood had never really understood, but had apparently been tradition for the last decade.

No, she was cool and calm and clinical. She gave precise direction and set marks. The main goal was to keep the Quaffle as far from Puck as possible and to put him out of commission if they could. Her beaters weren't the best (that honor belonged to Karofsky and Lopez in Slytherin), but they were the best she could get. Her team was highly trained and dedicated; all that they needed was a little bit of luck.

"Alright, boys, let's get on the pitch and shows those kittens what we're made of."

Her eagles cheered, much less violently than the lions next door, and they all trooped out to the Quidditch pitch to loud cheers from the Ravenclaw and Slytherin sections. The snakes always sided with whoever was playing against Gryffindor; theirs was a rivalry that would never be completely broken. She couldn't help the way she glanced through the Slytherins, hoping to catch a flash of blue in the green. She couldn't though, it was packed.

The Gryffindor's were already lined up on their side of the pitch, Puck forward as captain and the rest lined up straight across behind him. Quinn took up her position directly in front of him and gave him her best scowl. Coach Sylvester, the head of Slytherin and soul in charge of broom lessons and Quidditch refereeing, walked up with the trunk that held the balls and sat it down at their feet.

"Shake," she ordered without preamble, like she was talking to trained dogs.

Quinn and Noah shook hands, the blonde sneering at the boy's cocky smirk.

"Alright, mount your brooms, not each other," the older woman snarked when Puck didn't immediately let go of Quinn's hand. The younger blonde felt her face grow hot under the snickers of the Gryffindors behind their Captain. She forcefully removed her hand from Puck's and mounted her broom, a vintage Firebolt, and shot into the air again. The rest of her team followed and her Chasers moved into formation as she flew off to the goal posts. She saw her Seeker fly high into the sky and the Gryffindor Seeker do the same at the other end of the field.

The Gryffindors are chanting their song before the Quaffle is even released, and Quinn can't help but smile when she sees Puck and the other Gryffindor players get distracted by it.

 _In a western tower of Hogwarts_  
Is the house that I love best,  
The home of the mighty lions  
We always outshine the rest.

The chorus created a wave of motion over the stands when on every 'Hurrah' the Gryffindors would pump their fists into the air jubilantly.

 _Hurrah for the Gryffindor lions,_  
Hurrah for the red and gold!  
Hurrah for the Gryffindor lions,  
We fly to victory!

The Bludgers being released distracted them momentarily and she laughed loudly when Puck had to actually dodge one.

 _Whenever we are in a game_  
or wherever we may be  
to fight for right with all our might  
that is our victory!

The red and gold section of the audience finished of the song with one more rousing rendition of the chorus before breaking into loud cheers and various chants that were lost in the noise since they neglected to do them in sync. Quinn looked down at the pitch in time to see Sylvester release the Snitch. She barely saw the glint of gold escape her hand before she lost sight of the ball. Her Seeker, a tiny fourth year named Max, tracked it for several seconds more, sitting stationary on his broom and looking like a dog pulling at its chain. He was the second best Seeker at the school and the absolute best that Ravenclaw house had ever had.

The Quaffle was released just as the Ravenclaw supporters began the Eagle chant (E-E-E-A-G-L-L-L-E-S! E-A-G-L-E-S! GO EAGLES!) and Quinn took it as a sign of good fortune when Artie snatched up the red ball right away. The game was immediately taken to the Gryffindor side of the field and Artie was dodging the mark Puck had on him expertly, so Quinn had a little time to just observe. She dodged a stray Bludger and grinned at her Beater that came pelting after it.

Only a few minutes later that clang of a goal echoed over the pitch and there was a jubilant screech among the Ravenclaw spectators. Artie managed to maintain possession of the Quaffle for three more goals before Puck got it away from him. She thought she saw the larger boy plant his foot on Artie's chest when he wrestled the ball away, but she couldn't be sure from such a distance. Before too long, and with only a brief pause in the middle of the pitch to scuffle over possession, but it only lasted long enough to blink and then Quinn was fending off Puckerman.

The Gryffindor team had learned long ago that only Puck could score on her and only if he came up with a shot sequence that got her confused enough. This required that he have time to shoot multiple goals without losing possession. His Chasers and Beaters are left in charge of taking Artie and the other two Ravenclaw Chasers out of the game.

Puck only got four attempts at the goal before Artie broke away and distracted him. It was back and forth for over an hour after that, and Puck managed to make two goals, to Quinn's consternation. Happily though, Artie and her other chasers made five in that time and Ravenclaw was ahead.

The bespectacled boy was closing in for another goal when Puck intercepted him.

**HP!GLEE**

Puck felt bad. He really did. But his promise to Santana and his obligation to Kurt was more important than morals. He would make it look good. He would make it look like an accident. He would make himself look like a hero while also allowing Artie to fall.

The ends justified the means.

And then he planted his foot on Artie's chest, grabbed the boy's broom by the handle under the folds of his robes with one hand and hooked the Quaffle under his free arm, and pushed.

**HP!GLEE**

Quinn felt like her heart had flown up into her throat as she watched the boy's decent. Puck had noticed too and dropped the Quaffle; breaking into a dive with his arm outstretched so he could catch one of Artie's flailing hands. Their hands connected a few times but Puck couldn't get a tight hold. Quinn's hands moved to her throat and then to her eyes, but she couldn't blind herself completely. She peeked between her fingers as Artie plummeted with Puck on his tail, flat over his broomstick. The mohawked boy finally grabbed Artie's hand firmly, but it was too late. Puck didn't have time to pull his broom back up and so Artie hit the ground hard on his back, head and legs slamming down afterward and then Puck followed, nearly landing right on top of the boy. His broom clattered away, apparently undamaged.

A rare timeout was called and the Seekers had to hit the pitch along with Quinn and the Quaffle. The other players stayed hovering in the air and the Beaters kept the Bludgers from attacking.

Artie was a mess but he was alive and, according to the nurse, 'fixable.' Sylvester gave Puck, who was only sore and badly bruised, a proper reaming and awarded a penalty shot to Ravenclaw. Quinn had to call in her reserve Chaser. When they got back in the air for the shot, after Artie had been carried away on a floating stretcher, Puck gave a signal to his keeper and the boy kept well out of the way of the shot. Ten more points to Ravenclaw.

In the end, Max caught the Snitch for a decisive Ravenclaw victory. It hardly mattered that her reserve Chaser wasn't near Artie's caliber, Puck didn't even try for more goals. Quinn assumed he felt guilty, but his taking it easy on them just pissed her off instead of making her feel vindicated.

Quinn didn't feel much like celebrating. She just wanted to go to the hospital wing and check on Artie, but she mounted her broom and led the victory laps like a good captain, smiling a little at the haunting sound of the Ravenclaw house song drifting over the pitch.

 _Dear old Ravenclaw house,_  
Grand old Ravenclaw house,  
Champion house in all Hogwarts.

 _We're loyal just to you,_  
Faithful and true blue,  
We always will uphold you as the best.

 _House of Eagle fame,_  
Winners of the game,  
fly right through to victory.

 _Fight right to the end,_  
And when we've won it then,  
Three cheers for grand old Ravenclaw!

As the last verse died down, Quinn led her team to the ground and then to the locker rooms. They were all subdued, and it was agreed that they would go to the hospital wing before they joined the quiet celebration that Ravenclaw's Quidditch fans would be putting on for them.

When she exited the locker room first, in an effort to get some alone time and fresh air before they all trudged up to the castle, she immediately wished she had waited.

Rachel was waiting, her borrowed t-shirt and scarf making her nearly unrecognizable for a moment.

Quinn found herself speaking automatically, her brain-to-mouth filter going on the fritz just like it always did when she was around the brunette. "You look good in blue."

Rachel might have blushed, and she did bite her bottom lip and look down at the grass. "I look better in green, but thank you." She paused. "Congratulations, by the way."

"I don't really feel like celebrating." She shrugged.

"Do you feel like talking?"

Quinn sighed. "I know I said we would, but I need to go with the others to see Artie." The Slytherin nodded in understanding, looking disappointed just the same. "Rain check?"

"Sure."

Quinn stepped forward, still not thinking clearly. "You should come to the party."

Brown eyes snapped up to meet shining hazel. "Really?"

Quinn ducked her head and pulled on the end of Rachel's blue and bronze scarf. "Yeah, you're one of us today."

Rachel beamed and Quinn had to look away before the expression made her heart beat right out of her chest. "Ok, um, I'll see you there?"

"Yeah, do you know where the dorm is?"

"Eastern tower, spiral staircase."

"Right."

The door to the locker room opened and a few of Quinn's teammates stepped out. She motioned for them to wait for her and turned back to the brunette. "Maybe we can talk at the party. Maybe."

Rachel nodded. "You should go. Give Artie my regards."

Quinn nodded and walked backwards to her players, only reluctantly taking her eyes off the Slytherin when she reached them. She sighed.

_It's going to be a long night._


	4. I Can Show You the World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quinn and Rachel finally have that talk.

Artie had to be sent to St. Mungo's.

The nurse had done her best, but he was too hurt and they didn't stock the required potions and she wasn't an expert on spinal injuries. By the time the Ravenclaw team made it to the Hospital Wing he had already been put in stasis.

Brittany was heartbroken and confused, already sitting by his bed with a very uninterested Santana beside her.

The team didn't linger after they were assured that St. Mungo's would have him right in no time. Quinn thought of stalling by striking up a conversation with Brittany and Santana, but she had no idea what to say, and ever since Beth…well, Quinn and Santana didn't exactly get along.

There was nothing for it, she had nowhere to go but to the victory party, where a certain Slytherin was waiting to badger her with questions and unreasonable demands.

She spent the long walk up to the tower kicking herself for being so damn obvious. Rachel was pretty thick when it came to noticing things that didn't directly impact her, and if it hadn't been for Professor Yeni specifically asking Quinn to help Rachel with the wandless summoning spell Quinn knew she would have been able to escape Hogwarts with her pride and her secret crush intact.

While Quinn knew Rachel well enough to know that she wouldn't be laughed out, or treated harshly, she was also not optimistic. It was well known, at least among the Quidditch players that Finn Hudson had his eye on her. Despite being dumber than a sack of dead flobberworms, he was attractive and had a very good chance of playing professional Quidditch, even if it was just with the Cannons. No one really knew if Rachel was interest in him as well, but people did know that there had apparently been some type of  _something_  going on with the current, and very attractive, Head Boy, Jesse St. James. St. James was going places, no one would ever say anything different, plus he had great hair and he was in the Frog Choir, something that Rachel valued above all else. Quinn was too, but she never got solos, another thing that Rachel valued.

No, Quinn could never be the leading man that Rachel wanted and deserved. She felt that she would have eventually gotten over it, if only Rachel hadn't figured her out so easily.

"I'm an idiot."

"That is incorrect."

Quinn looked up with a start to find that she was standing at the entrance to the common room, and she had apparently missed hearing the riddle.

"Er, sorry. Could you repeat the riddle?"

xxx

Ravenclaw tower was filled with food, conversation, and quiet music when Quinn arrived after the rest of her team. She was noticed quickly and given a round of applause from the rest of her house, along with many congratulations and pats on the back. The party was noticeably more subdued than usual, with Artie missing. He and Tina routinely made the rather reserved common room a place of chaos after games. Now Tina was sitting in a corner with Mike, sipping at a Butterbeer and only giving half smiles.

Quinn had just opened her own Butterbeer to morosely nurse at when a gentle hand landed on her elbow. She looked up from the varied snacks on display and right into Rachel's deep brown eyes.

"How about those Eagles?"

Quinn smiled bashfully and looked back down at her Butterbeer. "I've seen better."

Rachel bumped her shoulder. "No need for modesty Ms. Fabray. You're speaking to a Slytherin, remember?"

"Right."

"How's your chaser? Abrams, right? He's the one that fell?" Rachel asked with genuine concern.

"Yeah. They had to send him to St. Mungo's. He broke his spine, but they should be able to fix him up easy."

"Well that's good." Rachel looked around the common room and Quinn took the opportunity to not stare at her. Nope, no staring occurred at all. "So this is a Ravenclaw party."

"Yeah, well, people are studying for O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s so…only the people that actually care about Quidditch are likely to join the festivities."

"O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s aren't for another four months."

Quinn raised an eyebrow. "And yet a certain Slytherin sixth year is already studying for them, so why shouldn't that hold true for  _Ravenclaw_ students?"

Rachel ducked her head but Quinn could still see that her cheeks were a little redder. "Right."

"I assume that Slytherin parties are a little more…enthusiastic."

Rachel shrugged. "We get a little more rowdy, I suppose. It's just grittier, darker. Your common room is much more airy than ours. Our windows are better though."

"Windows? I thought your common room was underground."

Rachel grinned. "It is, right near the lake, and sometimes we can see the squid swim by."

"Wow, that's crazy." Quinn could imagine it to be dark and somewhat creepy. The Slytherins could probably hear the water moving over and around them all the time.

Rachel hummed and shrugged. "At least you can see where you're walking up here." She took a step closer to Quinn when a fourth year walked behind her, and she didn't step away again. There was less than a foot between them.

Quinn sensed the change in mood by the way Rachel shifted in front of her. She cursed her nerves, and her inability to stop staring at Berry like a stalker all the time. She sighed at her own pitiful obviousness, because really, that's the only way someone as self-obsessed as Rachel Berry would have ever noticed her as anything other than the Pureblood bitch that had harassed her for five years.

"So…about the other day…and the last year…"

Quinn felt a flush spreading over her cheeks. "Yeah…" She suddenly became very interested in the pattern of the blue and bronze rug they were standing on as she braced herself for the letdown.

"You've really changed a lot since…well, you've changed." Rachel shifted again, this time awkwardly. Quinn was just happy she wasn't the only one with a foot in her mouth.

"Since I had a baby, you mean? You don't have to step around the issue like it never happened. I'm quite aware of what everyone was saying about me at the time."

"I'm sorry, I just meant-" Rachel ran a hand through her hair. "Oh bugger."

Quinn smirked. "It's fine. I know what you meant. She did change me."

Rachel laid a hand on Quinn's arm. "I'm just sorry you had to go through so much before we could start to be friends."

"Rachel," Quinn's gaze dropped to the floor, "we're never going to be friends. Not properly."

"I know you're right. There's no way we can be friends, not with the way you stare at me all the time." Quinn's face flushed spectacularly under the accusation, but she said nothing in her defense, so Rachel continued. "I have noticed, you know. I'm self-absorbed but I'm not blind."

Playing dumb was not a talent that Ravenclaw's courted, and that did include Quinn. "I'm sorry."

To Quinn's confusion, Rachel appeared surprised. "What are you sorry about? I'm very flattered."

"Really?" Quinn's left eyebrow rose dangerously. "That's not patronizing at all."

Rachel winced. "Once again, I buggered it up. I just…" she sighed with exasperation. "Will you go to Hogsmeade with me next week? As my date."

Quinn took a halting step back as if struck. She still hadn't entirely understood what had just happened, but it had sent her mind in a mad scramble after some sort of understanding. "I… but…I wasn't expecting…Oh, Merlin. I need to sit down." She briefly registered Rachel taking her by the arm and steering her into an empty armchair nearby. She blinked dumbly a few times and then looked up into worried brown eyes. "Did you just…ask me out?"

Rachel smiled thinly. "Yeah, I guess I did."

"But why?"

"What do you mean why?"

Quinn was absolutely baffled. "What could you possibly see in me? I mean, I know I'm pretty alright looking, but I was absolutely awful to you for years!"

Rachel got down on her knees beside Quinn so that she was looking up at her and very gently took Quinn's nearest hand in her own. "Quinn, you are the most beautiful witch I've ever seen or met," she began with stark honesty, "but there is so much more to you than that. Yes, you were pretty terrible to me for a while, but you've changed over this last year. You're the top of our class, the best keeper in Hogwarts, and you've been a great personal help to me. I'm not the best student, and you're not always patient with me, but you honestly try to help me improve and I know that you would do that for anyone who asked. You're worth all the gold in Gringotts and more besides."

"I'm going to cry."

"Please don't. Just say you'll go with me to Hogsmeade."

Quinn restrained herself from rolling her eyes only because she had to blink away a few astonished tears. "Oh I suppose, since you're so desperate."

"Desperate!"

"You are on your knees, begging me."

Rachel scrambled to her feet and Quinn laughed happily. "Hmph, how very Slytherin of you."

"I suppose you would consider that a compliment."

Rachel glared at her playfully. "You're lucky you're so pretty." She looked as though she was about to flounce off, so Quinn reached up and pulled a squealing Rachel down onto her lap.

"Shut up and give the winner a kiss."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "If you insist."

Quinn was very insistent.


End file.
